Sellersville Proposes Ordinance Defining Obscenity

August 21, 1985|by CHUCK AYERS, The Morning Call

What is obscene? The question arises in light of zoning amendments being offered by the Sellersville Planning Commission in an attempt to define obscenity and regulate the sale of materials that may be considered pornographic.

William Sabatino, chairman of the planning commission, said he is as surprised as anyone that the advisory body has come up with a way to define obscenity.

"I think it's very difficult to define pornography or what is obscene," he said. "I'm very surprised to see the attorney had come up with something."

Sabatino said he sees the ordinance as a way to "set a balance between the interest of the community and the interest of commercial interests who want to sell things."

The intent, he said, is to avoid problems arising from the sale of material that may be considered pornographic in areas within the borough that the community may not think appropriate.

"As it is now," Sabatino said, "there are no provisions in the ordinances. Sales could occur in places we don't want to have it."

The proposed ordinance would allow adult theaters or bookstores only in locations that are at least 500 feet from from the nearest point of a church, school or day-care center.

It would also prohibit material containing "sexual anatomical areas or activities" to be visible from any perimeter property line.

As defined in the proposed ordinance, what is to be considered obscene is "that which to the average person, applying contemporary community standards, has as its dominant theme . . . an appeal to the prurient interest."

Included in consideration of whether material is obscene is "whether the subject matter lacks serious literary, artistic, political, educational or scientific value," the ordinance reads.

In addition, the ordinance would prohibit "patently offensive" representations of ultimate sexual acts, normal or perverted, actual or simulated, as well as "patently offensive" depictions.

But such ordinances, according to commission solicitor Samuel G. Moyer, are always suspect to passing constitutional muster of allowing for freedom of expression, no matter how carefully worded.

"It's a difficult problem because the federal courts have not been much help. They say obscenity is something the community has to determine," Moyer said.

Bud Wenger, president of Borough Council, said he feels there are problems with regulating what people are allowed to read and view.

"Nobody's really jumping for joy over this thing," he said.

Wenger, a member of council five years ago when several people representing religious groups headed a push to establish a similar ordinance in the borough, said since there was never a problem with the sale of pornographic material in the community, there may not be a need to regulate its sale.

"When you have these sort of things you might be asking for problems," he said. "You can over-regulate yourselves."

"I have a problem with regulating what people read. Where do you stop? This is the thing that really concerns me," he said.

In addition, he said the definition is necessarily vague, making it difficult to establish just what "community standards" might exist.

But the condition of applying "prevailing community standards" to determine what is obscene is one that Sabatino said "can be held up in the courts, as I understand it."

While what is obscene and what is not, he said, "is very debatable," he sees the role of the municipal agency charged with interpreting the ordinances in instances of disputes as being able to establish what is obscene.

Because the commission members are representatives of the community, he said, "In a sense we would get the first shot."

Sabatino said if there is public outcry at the proposed amendment, it would tilt toward why the borough would allow the sale of such material at all.

"We're more likely to get questions from the public, 'Why are you allowing any of this stuff?' "

"Freedom of expression is a very important thing in our society," he said, "but I think there are limits. You don't go yelling 'Fire!' in a crowded theater.